Citrus peel oil extraction



May 1.7.0A 1947.

. W. A. PlPKlN l clITRUs PEEL oIL -ExTRAcTIoN Filed July 3, 1944 Maz/f ,4. Pwr/l Patented May 20, 1947 UNITED sTATEs PATENT oFFlcE 2.4205678 s crrnUs PEEL onJ EXTRACTION Wilbur A. Pipkin, Safety Harbor, Fla. Application July 3, 1944, Serial No. 543,394

3 Claims.

This invention relates to the extraction of peel oil from citrus fruits. The best grades of citrus peel oil are recovered from the citrus rind by pressure thereagainst at atmospheric or lower temperatures, and without mixing the peel oil with any of the juice from the fruit.

It is an object of my invention to provide a novel method of and apparatus for extracting peel oil from citrus fruit under the upreferable conditions above outlined.

In order to prevent mingling juice with the peel oil, attempts have been made to free the peel oil from the rind by abrasion and capture this before the fruit is subjected to a juice extracting process.

It is another object of my invention to provide a novel method of and apparatus for exi tracting peel oil from whole citrus fruit without causing the escape of juice from the fruit.

The manner of accomplishing the foregoing objects, as well as further objectsand advantages, will be made manifest in the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. 1 is a vertical sectional view of a preferred embodiment of the apparatus of my invention illustrating an initial ste'p in the performance of the method thereof.

Fig. 2 is a view similar to Fig. 1 and illustrates a concluding step in the performance of the method of my invention.

Fig. 3 is a cross sectional view taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

Referring specifically to, the drawings, an apparatus I0, shown therein for illustrative purposes, permits the method of my invention to be performed by hand. This apparatus includes a base II, providing a platform I2, on which is the lower cup I6 and has fingers 40 which are disposed radially with respect to the 'common axis of the cups and in uniformly spaced relation so as to extend between the ngers 25,-when the cup faces of the cups I6 and 30.

fixed a vertical standard or post I3, having a f section thereof toothed to provide a rack I4. The post I3 has fixed thereon a lower cup body I5 o-n which is formed a lower cup I6. The lower cup I6 includes a series of lingers 25 which are formed integral with body I6 and radiate with respect to the axis of the cup in uniformly spaced relation with each other. Mounted on the body I5 and surrounding the cup I6 is a rind oil collector 26 having a spout 21.

Disposed above the cup I6 is an upper cup 30 having a body 3| on which are provided slide collars 32 which slidably fit the post I3. J Also rotatably mounted on the body 3| is a shaft 33- 3D is loweredto effect an .interdigitatingrelation between said cups.

' Operation y To perform the method of my invention with the apparatus I0, a container 42 is rst placed on the platform I2 beneath the spout 21 to receive the peel oil extracted by the method. .The shaft 33 is now rotated by manipulation of the handle 35 to bring the flat side 36- of the gear sector 34 opposite the post I3; Thecup 30 and associated parts is then slid upwardly on the post I3 to present a gap between the lower and upper cups into which a whole citrus fruit such as an orange 44 may be inserted. The cup 3U is-now permitted to drop downwardly on the orange 44, the handle 35 is next rotated to bring the gear sector 34 into meshing relation with the rack I4 and the gear sector further rotated when so meshed, to force the cup downwardly and compress the orange 44 between this cup and theV lower cup I6.

An initial phase of this compression is shown in Fig. 1l where it is seen that the orange has not yet been forced to conform to the inner sur- The downward movement of the cup 30, of course, is continuous and rapidly passes through this phase of the.

compression to the point where the orange conforms with the cups and the hydraulic pressure of the juice-bearing structure within the orange resists further movement of the cups together.

This resistance results in the compression of the rind 41 itself between the juice-bearing structure andthe cups as clearly shown in Fig. 2 so as to rupture the oil cells in the `rind and rellease the peel oil therefrom. The peel oil, thus extracted, spurts or flows .outwardly onto the fingers 25 and 40, is collected in the collector 26 I8 and a fresh orange inserted for a repetition of the oil extraction process.

An outstanding advantage of the method or my invention is that it is a so-called cold" process in that the extraction takes place at atmospheric or lower temperatures. Furthermore, there is no necessity to dilute the peel oil with water, thereby losing some of the volatiles therefrom in the process of separating the oil from the water. f

After being treated lhy my process the oranges are ready to have the juice extracted from them by any of the methods in common commercial use, following which, the rlnds of the oranges are suitable for use in marmalade manufacture.

I claim:

1. A method of extracting peel oil from a whole citrus fruit which comprises providing support for all areas of the rind of said fruit which is adequate to prevent local outward bursting of the juice-bearing structure when said structure is subjected to relatively high pressure; and while maintaining said support. compressively reducing the volume of the space within the boundaries of said support to produce such a high internal pressure in said structure as to compress said rind and force peel oil therefrom; and collecting said peel oil.

2. A method of extracting peel oil from whole citrus fruit which consists in: constricting said fruit by the simultaneous and continuous application of substantially uniform but constantly increasing compressive forces on all portions of said rind at points sufliciently close to each other as will prevent the juice-bearing structure expioding outwardly through said rind, said constriction operating to compress said rind, and

express the peel oil therefrom. f

3. An apparatus for extracting peel oil from whole citrus fruit comprising a pair of cups having inter-digitating fingers; and means for bringing said cups together to embrace a Whole citrus fruit with said fingers in inter-digitating relation to compress said fruit and constrictthe salme to express peel oil from said rind by the simultaneous and continuous application of compssive forces on all portions of said rind at points sufllciently close to each other as will prevent the juice-bearing structure of the fruit exploding outwardly through said rind during the expression of the peel oil.

i WILBUR A. PIPKIN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Italy Nov. 18, 1930 

